http://www.thecarconnection.com/tips Mon, 30 Nov 2009 19:52:00 -0500 Tips and Advice -- find out how to maintain, service, insure, wash and wax, and change the oil in your car with tips from TheCarConnection.com. Lifestyle/Fashion http://static.thecarconnection.com/website/tcc-feed.jpg http://www.thecarconnection.com/tips http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037806_want-to-remote-control-your-minivan-check-the-app-store http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1037806_want-to-remote-control-your-minivan-check-the-app-store Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:51:00 -0500 It's official: "There's an app for that" has become the most annoying catchphrase of 2009 (on par with 2001's "You are the weakest link"). And yet, we have to admit that there are beaucoup apps out there -- some of them quite good. For example, developers at Appirion UG have developed a program that turns the iPhone into a remote control for a ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036804_today-in-wtf-a-red-light-district-goes-green http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036804_today-in-wtf-a-red-light-district-goes-green Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:05:00 -0400 In the current global economy, things are hard all over -- even in Berlin's red-light district. With fewer travelers coming to town for conferences and business meetings, sales at local bordellos have gone limp, but the owners of Maison d'Envie in trendy Prenzlauer Berg are hoping to give things a lift by offering a 5 € ($7.50) discount to any ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036028_german-luxury-brands-face-uncertain-future-in-u-s http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1036028_german-luxury-brands-face-uncertain-future-in-u-s Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:43:00 -0400 As we mentioned a couple of weeks ago, new fuel efficiency and emissions regulations issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation could have a serious impact on gas-guzzling luxury vehicles. If approved as they stand in draft form, the regulations provide very little room for deviation, which could result ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035251_rumor-daimler-bmw-may-buddy-up-to-retain-market-share http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035251_rumor-daimler-bmw-may-buddy-up-to-retain-market-share Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:20:00 -0400 Despite all the great news coming out of Germany in recent days, it's apparently not all biergartens and schnitzel over there: a new article in Der Spiegel reports that high-end German automakers Mercedes-Benz and BMW are facing tough times on the sales floor, as the world's touch-and-go economy forces customers to purchase cars from their ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035218_can-the-new-audi-a1-help-audi-reach-its-lofty-sales-goals http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035218_can-the-new-audi-a1-help-audi-reach-its-lofty-sales-goals Tue, 15 Sep 2009 10:05:00 -0400 Back in June, you might recall that Audi announced plans to roll its new A1 citycar into dealerships by early 2010. The automaker said that the A1 would debut as a three-door model, but that a five-door sportback version would soon follow. At the time, the A1 was slated only for European release. However, there's a lot of auto news flowing ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035110_mercedes-benz-s500-concept-for-frankfurt-plug-in-hybrid-s-class http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1035110_mercedes-benz-s500-concept-for-frankfurt-plug-in-hybrid-s-class Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:12:00 -0400 The Frankfurt Auto Show this year is all about green cars: highly fuel efficient clean diesels, electric cars, and plug-in hybrids. It's where the German automakers offer up their sexiest concept cars. So the photos of the eagerly awaited Mercedes-Benz "Vision" concept car are a bit of a shock: It looks identical to a standard 2010 ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1034459_germany-wants-1000000-evs-on-the-road-by-2020 http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1034459_germany-wants-1000000-evs-on-the-road-by-2020 Thu, 20 Aug 2009 11:11:00 -0400 Germany has set a goal of putting 1,000,000 electric vehicles on its roadways by the year 2020, and Chancellor Angela Merkel is putting together a plan to make that happen. The plan relies on financial incentives to both manufacturers and consumers, which would begin rolling out in the 2012 calendar year. In the meantime, the government has ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1034327_volkswagen-porsche-merger-moves-forward-qatar-gets-stake http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1034327_volkswagen-porsche-merger-moves-forward-qatar-gets-stake Mon, 17 Aug 2009 07:45:00 -0400 After many months of corporate negotiations, the first step toward Germany's great auto unification is now clear: Volkswagen has agreed to pay €3.3 billion (roughly $4.7 billion) for a 42% stake in Porsche AG, which has been valued at €12.4 billion. Details of the subsequent steps involved in the Porsche/Volkswagen merger seem murky, although ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1022390_german-satellites-control-your-cars-horn-in-case-of-emergency http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1022390_german-satellites-control-your-cars-horn-in-case-of-emergency Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:51:00 -0400 So, let's say you're in Stuttgart to visit the friendly folks at Mercedes-Benz. (They could use a little attention, since their competition's hogging the headlines.) During the night, a major fire breaks out down the road, but your TV's off, and there aren't any civil defense sirens, so how are you to know? By all the car horns going off, of ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1022382_porsche-ceo-resigns-merger-with-vw-inches-closer http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1022382_porsche-ceo-resigns-merger-with-vw-inches-closer Thu, 23 Jul 2009 09:10:00 -0400 And so it begins: as we mentioned on Monday, this is a big week for Porsche and Volkswagen, as the two German automakers finally take action on their highly anticipated merger. Overnight came news of a major development, indicating that VW's buyout of Porsche is on track and picking up speed: in a surprise late-night meeting, Porsche's ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1022263_the-next-new-audi-model-is-a-grand-piano http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1022263_the-next-new-audi-model-is-a-grand-piano Fri, 17 Jul 2009 09:31:00 -0400 Audi is celebrating its 100th birthday as a brand these days, with ceremonies that included the unveiling of a 32-foot-long, 10-ton model of the Audi TT sports car. So there was much anticipation around a gala event held last night at the Audi Forum in Ingolstadt, at which the company promised to unveil two brand-new Audi models in the ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1021753_porsche-planning-to-sell-volkswagen-shares-to-qatar http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1021753_porsche-planning-to-sell-volkswagen-shares-to-qatar Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:15:00 -0400 The bewildering Porsche/Volkswagen saga continues to evolve, and, we're sorry to say, it's become slightly more confusing today. To recap: Porsche owns a majority stake in VW, but only a slim one--just under 51%. Porsche also possesses options that allow it to buy additional stock in Volkswagen, and the company was prepared to exercise those ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1021544_2011-porsche-cayenne-hybrid-the-worlds-priciest-hybrid http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1021544_2011-porsche-cayenne-hybrid-the-worlds-priciest-hybrid Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:01:00 -0400   When Porsche introduces the 2011 Porsche Cayenne Hybrid late next year, its first-ever hybrid-electric vehicle may be the priciest hybrid on earth. While a Porsche executive said pricing hasn't been finalized, according to the German Automobilwoche, the expected European price will be in the vicinity of 90,000 Euros--or $125,000 in US ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1020689_link-love-from-the-car-connection-reading-behind-the-wheel-music-for-hipsters-and-gm-targets-the-zune-generation-assuming-there-is-one http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1020689_link-love-from-the-car-connection-reading-behind-the-wheel-music-for-hipsters-and-gm-targets-the-zune-generation-assuming-there-is-one Wed, 13 May 2009 08:22:00 -0400 Zuning in -- General Motors' marketing department isn't letting all this bankruptcy folderol spoil their fun. Those chipper clipboard-toters are working overtime to reach every viable customer demographic. GM's latest target: owners of the Microsoft Zune, America's favorite also-ran mp3 player. Yes, the General is planning to make Zune ..]]> http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1020514_rip-rip-snorting-audi-r8-v12-tdi-diesel http://blogs.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1020514_rip-rip-snorting-audi-r8-v12-tdi-diesel Thu, 07 May 2009 12:16:00 -0400 TDI, we hardly knew ye. Dispensed before birth, now merely a dream of the clean, high-mileage supercar, how should we mourn the death of the Audi R8 V12 TDI diesel--which Audi now says it won't build after all? First revealed at the 2008 Detroit auto show as the Audi R8 TDI Concept, then updated as the 2009 Audi R8 Le Mans Concept at last ..]]>